It should come as no surprise that broadcasters have thoroughly hashed the question of the FCC’s jurisdiction in the courts. The argument, in the context of unlicensed broadcasting, revolves around a single premise: the federal government is empowered to police all interstate activity while business within a state falls within the jurisdiction of the state. Broadcasters – especially microbroadcasters – have argued that if their radio signals do not cross state lines, they are not engaged in “interstate commerce” – and therefore don’t need a license from the FCC.
This particular challenge to FCC authority started all the way back in 1928, when the license for a radio station in Homewood, Illinois owned and operated by the American Bond and Mortgage Company was set to expire. The company went to court seeking to affirm its right to continue broadcasting, arguing that since its signal did not travel outside Illinois the Federal Radio Commission had no power to license it anyway. District court judge James H. Wilkerson disagreed: Continue reading “FCC Jurisdiction: Interstate Alone?”
Author: diymedia_tu6dox
Media Minutes: Behind the Scenes
Things will be static around here until the new year; in the meantime take a tour of the Media Minutes production space I cobbled together.
The initial plan called for utilizing the facilities of the university’s public broadcast complex, but the radio stations are woefully behind the times technologically (nearly-abandonware audio editing systems and no network capability within or between studios). Plus, during pledge drives I’d find myself with no place to work. Going the DIY route is not bad, especially when you’ve actually got a budget to work with and expert advice available. Continue reading “Media Minutes: Behind the Scenes”
"The Fish Was Delish and It Made Quite a Dish"
Strong Bad does the radio dial.
“College radio can pretty much be summed up in five words: Dead air, um, dead air.” Not always true, but enough to bust a gut.
Making Waves Update; FCC in MN
Michael Lahey’s been getting around: his killer microradio documentary will get more screenings around the country next year, one of which will be in April at the Anthology Film Archives in NYC. Also, a professor from the UK recently contacted Michael about using Making Waves as part of an exercise/discussion in a new textbook on alternative media.
Earlier this month Michael also was a special guest on The Power Hour, a talk show carried on the Genesis Communications Network. Not only did Michael get two hours to plug the film and talk about the issues behind it, but they also opened the phone lines. That’s where things got interesting: Continue reading “Making Waves Update; FCC in MN”
Dutch Pirate Blowtorch Blowout
It’s tough to fully understand because it’s all in Dutch, but there was one hell of a pirate broadcast in Europe this past weekend. Radio Koning, Keizer, Admiraal (“King, General, Admiral”) took to the airwaves Friday on 97.0 FM, running 11,000 watts out of an antenna more than 100 meters tall.
The broadcast was the result of a combined effort of four pirate station-groups operating in the eastern Netherlands, laid on (in part) to protest the methodical sweep of the FM band carried out by the Dutch government in the past few years as part of a policy of spectrum commodification. Practically speaking, however, it was just one big party. Continue reading “Dutch Pirate Blowtorch Blowout”
Denver Free Radio Packs It In
Sad news from the mile-high city: KCTS Radio, after a short but spirited game of cat-and-mouse with the FCC, has decided to retire the operation. From a communiqué first e-mailed (now available on the station’s web site), station spoke Carl Nimbus answers, in detail, the question, “So what happened to ‘we’re just going to keep coming back’?”
The FCC was all over us. More than they have the time and budget for. More than nearly any other pirate station in the country….[Denver FCC agent Jon] Sprague and friends were coming faster and more frequently than their counterparts do in markets like LA, SF, NYC, Dallas, Chicago and other large cities. Why would that be? The FCC responds to complaints from licensed broadcasters. They very rarely go out at random to shut down a pirate. Continue reading “Denver Free Radio Packs It In”
FCC as Sketch Troupe
Shamelessly lifted from the trade rag Radio & Records, this is not the work of beings in the reality-based community:
In a taped performance shown [Dec. 3] at the Federal Communications Bar Association FCC Chairman’s Dinner… [Mikey] Powell donned a wig that looked only slightly worse than [Donald Trump’s] actual hair and faced down Commissioner Jonathan Adelstein, Media Bureau Chief Ken Ferree and Powell Chief of Staff Bryan Tramont at a large table in a spoof of the boardroom scenes from the NBC TV show The Apprentice. Dutifully filling in for real-life Trump assistants Carolyn and George were Commissioners Kathleen Abernathy and Michael Copps. Continue reading “FCC as Sketch Troupe”
Revelation = Cyclical History
“Heyheyheyhey. Did you hear about the FCC wacking on a TV show with $1mil fine based on complaints from what basically boiled down to three people? It was all over the news like wildfire. I read about it in the New York Times. Freedom of speech is under attack, why aren’t you all over this?”
Ah, the tyranny of the few? It isn’t all that new:
“The FCC, an appointed body, not elected, answerable only to the President, decided on its own that radio and television were the only two parts of American life not protected by the First Amendment to the Constitution. Why did they decide that? Because they got a letter from a Minister in Mississippi.” Continue reading “Revelation = Cyclical History”
Religious Broadcast Executive: Good Work If You Can Get It
Someone who calls themselves “a former employee” of the Educational Media Foundation (corporate parent of the K-LOVE and AIR-1 radio networks) sent along some interesting information about the salaries of the heads of various religious broadcasting institutions.
The original message lamented the fact that EMF Broadcasting’s president, Dick Jenkins, pulls down somewhere between $250-280,000 per year, apparently the highest in his peer group. Other chief executive numbers offered for comparison (can’t vouch for their accuracy, they were reportedly pulled from charitynavigator.org): Continue reading “Religious Broadcast Executive: Good Work If You Can Get It”
Scene Report: Colorado
Been tardy about this one: KCTSradio in Denver is now online and streaming; its on-air status, I think, is best described as “dormant.” According to some recent press, its founder, Carl Nimbus, is “all about determination…They bust you fast to discourage you, but we’re not going to get discouraged. We’re going to keep coming back on the air.”
In Boulder, Monk says “it’s time to grow the station again.” This time, they’re soliciting applications from everywhere: “if they’re tech savvy enough, they can be anywhere in the world. All they need is to be able to stream at 64kb have some music, a mic and an attitude.” This is similar to a “public access pirate radio” concept explored a few years back, except live.